


The Stars of Anrike

by Catriona_Herondale



Series: The Gods of Meiaya [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-21
Updated: 2016-06-21
Packaged: 2018-07-16 07:59:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7259140
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Catriona_Herondale/pseuds/Catriona_Herondale
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Stars of Anrike are falling. <br/>The Ancient Prophecy has been broken. <br/>She’s fighting against the fabric of time as she tries to complete what people across the centuries couldn’t.<br/>Trapped in a constant cycle of gods and cults, Ailis will need to overcome the fury of the New Gods and find the scared birth place of the Anrike, the new and the old Gods, before the world of Meiaya crumbles to pieces.</p>
<p>The Stars of Anrike is an enticing novel set in the forgotten Dark Ages, beckoning readers to draw themselves deeper into a world full of Gods and prophecies.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Stars of Anrike

She looked up at the sky, her blue eyes taking in the shining lights of the Gods. The Stars of Anrike were still shining above her. But the rising sun was glaring over the trees. She looked back down hurriedly, hands gripping shakily at the blunt rock bowl. She still had time, but not much. 

“Ancient Gods, show me the way.” The lump in her throat made it hard to talk. Her hands were shaking; her breath was unstable. Her hands fumbled in the leather pouch by her hip. She pulled out a handful of Juniper berries and three long pieces of lavender. 

She cursed. 

The lavender was starting to wilt already. 

She pushed the thought away and placed the berries and lavender into the rock bowl. She quickly crouched down, grabbing at a large random rock. The rock shouldn’t be that heavy, but her shaking hands made her weak. She still needed to mash them together.

“I am Ailis, tribesmen of the Moor tribe,” she began. “I beg the Ancient Gods of Meara to hear my call and answer my prayers.” She pushed the rock against the berries, the flush of dark blue staining the lavender.

“I need to find the Valley of Gods. Show me the way and I will appease the Old Gods, and the New,” Ailis called out around the growing lump in her throat. She mixed and smashed until the berries and lavender had created a dark blue liquid that tainted the sides of the bowl. She pulled out a small, bone dagger, the silver band around the handle reflecting the sun’s blinding rays. “I give my blood to the Gods. I will complete this task, or die trying,” She announced, her throat closing on that one particular syllable. 

She sliced the blade down her palm, pain spreading through her hand. She watched, a wince pulling at her lips as her blood dripped into the bowl.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

She ripped off a section of her mid-thigh length tunic to dress her wound before mixing the blood in with the previous liquid. Taking a deep breath, she dipped her hand in the cooling liquid, coating her tanned skin in a deep blue colour. Ailis pressed her hand to her chest, closing her eyes. It dried quickly. 

She waited.

Her heart started racing.

She waited. 

Her palms started sweating.

She waited.

Nothing happened. 

She opened her eyes and looked around. What was going on? Why wasn’t anything happening? There’s no apparition, no secret path, nothing at all. 

Pain clawed through her chest, leaving her breathless and doubling over, as she dropped the dagger. She gripped the Alter, gasping desperately for air. “The valley of the Gods….” A voice whispered in her head, “Find the tree of Old Times. Follow the path to the Valley of Gods and complete the ritual.”

Images flashed violently in her head. 

A blonde man.

A lake. 

A tree.

A stone path.

Scattered fire.

Broken sword.

Falling pendant.

Blood.

Alter. 

Ailis stumbled back, crying out and falling to the ground, hands gripping at the long grass. “Find it.” The voice hissed and then everything was quiet. The pain slowly faded and she finally regained the ability to breathe. She dropped to her forearms, covering the sides of her arms in the brown dirt, and took in a deep breath of the forest air. It took a few moments but her head stopped spinning and she scrambled up to her feet, her legs shaking like a new born foal.

Black spots plagued her vision and she gripped the nearest tree trunk to balance herself, digging her front teeth into her chapped bottom lip. She squeezed her eyes shut, willing the ability to see clearly again. The next time she opened her eyes, her vision was clear and sharp – sharper than before. Ailis let out a sigh of relief and pushed herself off the tree. Her body felt heavy and sluggish but she forced herself to pick up the dagger, sliding it back into the sheath. 

“Is it done?” 

She recognised that voice but she couldn’t put a name to the voice. 

Ailis snapped around, her heels digging into the earth, holding an arm around her stomach, protecting her vital organs from damage. Once she saw her tribe leader, she fell onto one knee immediately. 

She lowered her head.

“Yes, I have spoken to the Gods and they have granted me the knowledge to complete my task.” 

“Good.” 

Ailis looked up at her leader. His cold, dark eyes looked down at her. “Your mother would have completed this quest by now, if it wasn’t for that bear,” he stated harshly, turning on his heel. 

“I’m not my mother,” she muttered, slowly standing up. 

“Correct. Your mother wouldn’t have wasted time, avoiding her destiny.” 

“I’m going to complete it. Whether you believe or not, it’s your choice,” she said, clenching her fists. She didn’t know if she was actually going to finish it. If her ancestors couldn’t, how could she?

“I don’t believe in you,” he said bluntly, looking back at her. 

A muscle twinged in his cheek. 

“You’re reckless, irresponsible, and stupid.” He sneered. 

She took a step back. 

“You’re right,” she stated. “But I will prove my tribe proud. I will make my ancestors proud.” She walked past him, their shoulders brushing together. He grabbed her wrist, yanking her back harshly. He twisted her arm behind her back, pressing her front against the tree. “If you come back and you have been successful, you will be allowed to re-join the tribe. But for now, you have been banished.” She heard steel scraping against leather as he pulled out his knife. 

She cried out as the blade bit into her wrist. 

Fear gripped at her throat.

She’s seen him do this before, with Falik. He had carved the Mark of Sodomy into his left wrist. He banished him. 

The blade was digging into her left wrist.

Ailis couldn’t figure out what he was carving into her wrist before letting her go. She pulled her hand away, biting her lip as the blood dripped from the swirling wound. The Mark of Chaos.

The tribe leader didn’t spare another glance at her as he slid his knife back into its place. “One month, Ailis. One month,” he called over his shoulder as he walked away in strides. 

He felt no remorse for branding her as one of the Shamed.

She was lost for words. He was the man who kept her safe throughout her life. He was the man who helped her recover from injuries, the one who became her father figure, the one who she trusted. And he banished her. With no regret, no remorse. 

He banished her. 

Ailis gulped back her tears and tore another part of her tunic to wrap, and hide, her new wound. Tribes don’t take too kindly to the wandering Shamed anymore. Birds chirped and cawed to one another, breaking the dead silence with the sounds of a lively forest. Soft paws padded against the fallen leaves as predators stalked their prey.

The Wild Forest was once again free; untouched by the will and greediness of men. Ailis took one final gulp of air before beginning her short journey back down the steep and rock-strewn hill. 

Using the rocks as stepping stones, she stumbled down the hill. Ailis looked around at her surroundings silently, her trained hunter’s ears straining to hear every noise she could.  
She could barely hear the soft whinny of her horse downwind from her and she let out an almost inaudible groan. He’d spooked her horse and now she had to trudge down the green swirling hills to where her grey mare grazed on the thick grass.

The mare raised her head and trotted over to her owner, pushing up against her. 

That small peaceful reunion lasted for only a few moments before the bear’s roar grabbed her attention. Ailis’ head whipped around. She grabbed her longbow, knocking three arrows to the bow with ease.

A dirty-blonde haired man stumbled over the rolling hill, green eyes wide and blood dripping from cut on his cheek. The bear sprinted after him and she pulled back the string, closing one eye and aiming for the bear. 

“Duck!"

She took a deep breath and let go of the string as she exhaled, eyes trained on her target.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

One arrow lodged itself in the bear’s eye.

One arrow stuck itself in the bear’s throat. 

The last arrow wedged into the bear’s chest, where it should have pierced a vital organ. 

The bear collapsed, rolling onto its great head as it went completely limp, sprawled out of the ground. The strange man looked up at Ailis, disbelief evident in his eyes, chest heaving.

“You could have shot me!”

“I told you to duck.”


End file.
